We as Democratic Party Members must always define ourselves and maintain our narrative

[Civic Justice]

We as Democratic Party Members must always define ourselves and maintain our narrative.

Republicans are what they are, there's much history and even the recent history just back to the 1969 Era, when Former Southern Democrats which was the Conservative Group that was born of Confederate Ideals, they were the make up of what former Confederate Democrats were. Which was "a group that supported the Slave Owners, and Slave Era Industrialist who built their fortunes from slave and indentured servant labor, they were never a group that support people before Industry.

When they saw via Nixon, they could move into the Republican Party and continue their agenda, but also because they wanted to infiltrate the Republican Party to try and roll back Civil Rights. If people read the history>

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/aug/28/republicans-party-of-civil-rights

THE COMPLEXITY:

Previously, the "Southern Democrats" fought hard against Civil Right Acts, It was the LIBERAL segment of the Democrats that supported the passage of the Civil Rights Act. when documents speak of Democrats in relation to Civil Rights Act, it should be noted and clarified that it was "SOUTHERN Democrats", for example, were less likely to vote for the civil rights bills of the 1950s and 1960s. SOUTHERN Democrats were more likely to filibuster. LIBERAL DEMOCRATS were the group who supported Civil Rights within The Old Democratic Party, which was dominated by SOUTHERN Democrats.

Republican previously, stood up for Civil Rights, but when that took place, the SOUTHERN Democrats, figured they could move over to overtake the Republican Party and turn its to the Ideals of the SOUTHERN Democrats who aspired to continue the Confederate Democrats ideals. When that happen, the LIBERAL Democrats gained power over the Democratic Party, and thus took up Civil Rights and Human Rights and moved us forward to be what the Democratic Party is today.

"THIS POLITICAL PARTY FLIP was confusing for many people, AS it was a Political Ploy, set up and executed by the Former Southern Democrats who were SUPPORTERS of the Ideals of the Former Confederacy Democrats and Supported Segregation Forever.
"After the election of Abraham Lincoln, Southern Democrats led the charge to secede from the Union and form the Confederate States of America. The US Congress was at the time dominated by Republicans."

People should understand the history of influence SOUTHERN Democrats had, against those who aspired to the Lincoln Republican Ideals about Freedom. To do so, one has to understand what was the make up and roots of SOUTHERN Democrats and where they were derived from.

The white Southern Democrats was dominated almost entirely by the Democratic Party. White Democrats ran the South during the war, through the Jim Crow days of segregation and right up until the early 1960s. These southern democrats of that era "DETESTED" the ideal of any Federal or State programs that helps blacks with public services and other opportunity. They hated it with a passion which spilled into the streets with violence upon and against blacks.

Therefore, when one hears the story that it was Democrats that birthed KKK... one should remember, that was SOUTHERN Democrats with Confederate Ideals brought over from the Confederate Democrats. They are not the make up of MODERN DAY Democrats.

Those who were formerly entrenched in the OLD SOUTHERN Democrats became the modern Day Republicans with Conservative Agenda, with aim to Conserve the Ideals of the Confederacy, which they tried for many decades to do, through the dominance over the Democratic Party, as SOUTHERN Democrats. Again, as I said, with the election of Richard Nixon, a Republican with Ideals that he could drive the Republican Party and enlisted Former Southern Democrats and their ideals. He set forth to do so, as a result the Conservative Minded Southern Democrats gravitated to the Republican Party. Unfortunate as it is, some of the Conservative Minded Southern Democrats remained in the Democratic party, and they today, represent the more Right Leaning Make Up of the Democratic Party.

If one goes back to 1960's early, the Conservative Southern Democrats, fought LBJ, and would not have passed the Civil Rights Bill of JFK, because they were set to water it down and remove the provisions set forth within it, and to certainly remove anything concerning Voting Rights. It was much to do with the Death of Kennedy, which in sad reality for such death, it ultimately helped LBJ push forth the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. History does not give Hubert Humphery the credit he deserves, but he was the strong holder of the LIBERAL Democrats together, and LBJ determination and knowledge of how SOUTHERN Democrats operated that gave LBJ the means to know how to challenge them, and what he needed to do to get the Civil Right Act of 1964 passed. After the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 ((The Voting Rights Act of 1965, signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson, aimed to overcome legal barriers at the state and local levels that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote as guaranteed under the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.)) MLK, embraced the LBJ's War on Poverty, even though he opposed the escalation of the war in Vietnam, which put a rift with his relations with LBJ, he still understood and support the economic agenda to enact war of poverty, by the end of Kings life, he was focused on the next steps which included "economic equilibrium and economic opportunity equality. The sadness of the Vietnam war, which LBJ was lured into escalating by the Military Industrial Complex Affiliates and supporters, was a conversation LBJ and MLK could not reconcile. But as history led to show within the Nixon Administration, the Pentagon Paper came to show, that these acts were precipitated long before LBJ was President, and was very difficult for any President of the era to cease the war acts. Kennedy, however was determined to put an end to it, and not push its escalation. So, by the time LBJ was president, the pressures and challenges to address Civil Rights and Poverty, were his agenda, but the Vietnam war confounded so much, that it made havoc, that was difficult to overcome. Between the pressures and failing health, LBJ declined to run again. -
When Johnson stepped aside in 1968, Humphrey won the Democratic presidential nomination, losing by the narrowest of margins to Richard M. Nixon in the general election.
Hubert Humphrey was one of the nation’s most prominent liberal politicians in the mid-20th century, and his long career made him one of the leading figures in U.S. Senate history. Known for his oratorical skill, he argued tirelessly for legislation addressing issues of civil rights and nuclear disarmament, long before such causes became accepted by the mainstream. As Lyndon B. Johnson’s vice president, Humphrey lost the support of many liberal Americans as the voice of the administration’s Vietnam War policy. Had Humphrey won in 1968, we'd have a far better America and a far Strong Democratic party, if the Liberal of the era has not withdrew their support of Humphrey in the convoluted mess regarding Vietnam, Had only the Liberals understood, it was not Humphrey role to make decisions regarding Vietnam's war escalation, he was VP, and had not power to overcome the influences of the Military Industrial complex and their convoluted systems of influential impact upon and and ultimately against the LBJ original course and concerns for Civil Rights and War on Poverty.

By the time Nixon won, we began a period of madness, war escalation and a Democratic party without a true leader to combat the Nixon madness. Thus is the period where Southern Democrats and their Ideals became part of the Nixon Machine of what is today's Republican Party and Republican Systems politics and agenda.

Today we think of the Democratic Party as the champion of Civil Rights, more than 90 percent of whom support the party. But it was the other way just 60 or 70 years ago in America

IT IS SO IMPORTANT - FOR TODAY'S GENERATION TO LEARN THE HISTORY AND IMPACTS - AND EMBRACE THE NEED FOR CIVICS EDUCATION. by doing so, we can avoid repeating many of the mistakes of the past.

The average person today, does not truly go into these things to look at the many things that have taken place over the past decades, nor do they research even going further back than the 1960's. But the 1960's serves to give people good understand as to how we became the Democratic Party that we are today.
Today, after 54 yrs,since the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; which is 3 generations of 18 yrs olds, (the age eligible to vote). Many are far removed from understanding what truly took place before and up to 1964, or through 1968. Then in 1969, under Nixon, many only know about "Vietnam", but they know little about the Nixon Era Republican Assault not only upon and against Civil Rights, but the same Assault upon our Democracy, not unlike that which is currently being engaged by Trump Era Republican.

Even, the 1980's under Ronald Reagan, who began his assault on the benefits gained under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, when he as Governor of California, attacked "higher education" from the Community College to the Cal State Run Universities.
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ684842.pdf
When Reagan became President, he expanded his attack on Universities, and went further to damage as if to destroy "mental health facilities and the systems that supported mental health treatment". He literally, dumped the mental patient upon the streets of America with nothing and no means to truly get help, and our homeless population exploded, as well as by 1983, we were saturated with "drugs" dumped directly in the minority and poor white communities across this nation which flooding the former mental health patients with drugs. This cycle is morphed into a devastation we are still dealing with this very day.

I know many don't care for reading long posting, but this is "a compressed overview" of things that plague us this very day, as to people and their misunderstanding the nature of Political Party Agenda and Political Party Politics.

There was NEVER any such thing as FISCAL CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICANS" that was a ruse, set up mainly to direct money to the Idealism's born of Confederate Ideal, and a stand against public funds being used to help people, directly aimed at blocking funds from helping minorities, and it swept up "poor whites" as collateral damage in how it has impacted and denied them the same it sought to deny to minorities.
They play it off as "limited government", which is not even a reality, when a "GROWING NATIONS" also has to have a growing system of Governance, to ensure we have an ongoing growth and development of "Regulatory Governance" which is the foundational elements that is at the core of this Nations strength and domestic national security.

This has been something the general public has not been taught, since the desegregation of schools which brought with it, the "neglect to further continue teaching American Civics Education. By the 1970's Civics Education was damaged, not only by the intent to ensure that people were made politically ignorant, but also by the positions taken by the anti-war people, who attacked Civics Education, because they felt it groomed people for "War Service" rather than for Civil Service.

People need to know these things. Those who care about Democracy, will understand what I've written, and not just read it, but give it the DU vote, and also share comments to keep it circulating so more can read and learn and be inspired to research and validate and learn for themselves. I know many people will not read this, and some will, hopefully those who have friends who are not averse to reading, will share a link so those they know can read and hopefully be inspired to research and learn more.
It can help people understand the make up of Bills and Measures, pushed by Republican that are not good for us as a society, but it can help people understand the Bills and Measures, pushed by Democratic minded people, who care to see us progress a Society that promotes the continual improvements in and of our Democracy.

One must know the history to truly understand the work and labors that it took for Today's Democratic Party, to be the champion for Civil Equality, Civil Rights and the respect of people over industry, and to support a system that has concerns for the welfare of American Citizens and to build a better more Equality based Democracy.

We struggle today, because of the history, but once the history is understood as to how we became the Democratic Party we are today, then we can move ahead with a unity of purpose and a party with the values of civility for "All" Americans as Citizens. We can then promote not only Equality, but Respect the Diversity that is in need of "Equality".

This post should be "good reading for all young and even many older Democratic people", who can benefit from understanding the history of how we became the Party we are today. Hopefully, it inspires them to RESEARCH and learn more.

[tonyt53]

1. Why exactly should "older Democratic people" read it? We lived through it and saw it.

We sure don't need somebody to narrate it for us. It's the very reason we are Democrats now. WE are the basis of the Democratic Party now.

[Fla Dem]

2. Dear Mr/Ms Civic Justice

Last edited Wed Mar 21, 2018, 11:27 AM - Edit history (1)

Welcome to DU.

I have read a number of your lengthy and motivational dissertations. You may not be getting the response you seek as many here on DU are already active Democrats(Liberals and Progressives) and understand the necessity of aggressively working within our party to promote our Democratic ideals.

Your comments are kind of like preaching to the choir and a tad condescending. We volunteer with our local Democratic party, we attend rallies and marches, we work to get out the vote, some DUer's work with advocacy groups, we contact our representatives both on a state and national level and a number of DU Members have sought public office.

There are also intellectual and learned members of DU who have a firm grasp on not only our party's history, but American history as well.

In short, we embrace your message, but we are already pretty much there and have been going on 18 years as members of this forum.

It would be interesting to know what your background is. Are you an educator? A political operative? Are you active in the Democratic Party? Do you hold an elected office? What do you do to spread the word and encourage active participation other than post on DU.

This is not meant to be criticism, just need to understand your creds.

[Civic Justice]

3. I just do what I do

Thank you for the Welcome

I know many older democratic people lived through it, but I've talked to some older people, who truly were not very politically involved when they were young, "they were busy working and struggling to raise families".... I grasp the fact that many participants in this site are already 'well groomed in Democratic Politics" as well as many are familiar with the history of how we became to be whom we are today.
But... if one recalls, when Bernie Sander's ran, he brought many people who had not previously been politically interested or motivated in politics and its history, as well as he brought many young people to begin to think about politics. This post was not written as if to talk down to anyone, and certainly not to democratically minded liberal people who followed history and politics and understand the long and tangled road it took for us to get here today.

I don't only write on this site, I wrote much on City Data where there are many with great opposition mindsets about Democratic Politics I also write on sites that other people in foreign lands can read to grasp elements of our Democracy and the Democratic processes... I met every debate challenge they presented, until they had no defense, except some die hard who refused to change.
I've written on other platforms, I also submit writing to some of the Ivy League Political Science Professors and Sociology Department and I have written much to many politicians, I share writing and conversation with many people whom are willing to engage discussions of such, including Talk Radio who also reach many people. 1.7 million people have read posting I've written in City Data, I'd say that's a good outreach, considering if only a % of those got any points or it inspired any further research or conversation, then by factoring, it may well have had variables that touched many more if we factor the concept of six degrees of separation within society. (Six degrees of separation is the idea that all living things and everything else in the world are six or fewer steps away from each other so that a chain of "a friend of a friend" statements can be made to connect any two people in a maximum of six steps.) I'm certainty not here to engage pissing contest, I care about the values and certainly the information that can and does make us a better Democracy. It's my choice of investing time to write, and writing certainly has done much for society, considering the Billions of Books and Writing that exist. I'm all for even more people writing. The Internet has been a good thing in society, because people can read, link and share links to things and that expands the engagement of dialog.
It's not just people in America who read and engage these forums, there are people in other parts of the world, who engage, as well as people in countries that are struggling to build and have a democracy.
I need no specific credential to write, research, and share commentary. If one writes and only one person gets something from it, then it has been of benefit to another. I'm an individual who has engaged this web site to share commentary and write... for the things that I care about our society. That's cred's enough for me. I need no pageantry of title to do so.

I'm happy to hear the many dedications you described... "Its such a good thing."

The "tag line of your post" should serve to not make challenge upon me, if you believe and support the tag line on your post.
"The ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all. John F. Kennedy"


When our societies voter turn out is not all that it should be.. writing about the benefits of Democratic Party its ideals and agenda as well as its history, I consider a good thing in the big picture of it all.

[Fla Dem]

4. Thanks for your response

Perhaps I should have responded to your other post where you state:

"I've written a few post while on here, but the commentary seem to be lacking, and I'm not understanding that. It makes me sad, to think that our "2018 Mid Terms" may produce this same type of silence and with such silence it may have indications of people not voting, and not reaching out to others to vote. "

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=10385880

You seemed dismayed you weren't getting lively debate to your comments. My only point was you're not really bringing anything new to to DU, unlike perhaps the other forums where you post. We are in agreement.

Also, sometimes brevity is more effective than long comments. Get your point across without a lot of superfluous commentary.

"I'm an individual who has engaged this web site to share commentary and write... for the things that I care about our society."

I applaud your desire to write and engage about the those things you care about.

[marble falls]

5. Sidney Greenstreet explaining civil responsibility to Bogart in "Maltese Falcon"...

Be preachy or verbose, but please, dear jebus, not both.

[Civic Justice]

6. What written is to one as they interpret it.

I likely won't change the way I write and the way I engage subject matter. As I learn the culture of this forum, there will be those who care to read and those who don't. Nothing is really a one size fits all when it comes to life and commentary. I'm fairly certain, this site gets new members on a daily basis, and may even get members who may have not been long term Democrats, and maybe even young people who have never engaged politics.
Therefore, I won't assume that "everyone" here is the most seasoned and long term devotees.... and that is a fairness, which is open to hope... the party continues to expand and grow and attract new members, "everyday" a mass of people turn 18, and in doing so, a great many are motivated to become political and self invested voters.

If that were not true, then the Party itself would be in dire trouble. It has a responsibility to grow its membership, not just 'assume and cater only to its long term members that compose the base, it has to grow with society and everyday.... there are people becoming voter age of 18; as well as today, with the madness of Trump and his mess, more and more who have never been concerned about politics and understanding Political Party as also being attracted to become members of the Democratic Party.

Therefore, I won't become one to write with an assumption that 'everyone who visits and has joined this site" has a long background in being members of the Democratic Party, or even being Politically concerned.

In my working years and works I engage people young and old who are not very political minded and some who are astonished at some of the history involved... Therefore it is not suitable for me to just post one liner agreements to commentary as if only to appeal to long term vested Democrats, I support that base, but I also support 'ALL" NEW COMERS.

Therefore, rather than long term Party Members becoming to feel commentary as condescending, why not think that whats written is not just for them, but to appeal to the new comers. I feel content should have inclusive commentary that can enlighten new comers..... as I certainly support the growth of the party....

[marble falls]

7. When selling opinion by the pound...

I likely won't change the way I write and the way I engage subject matter. As I learn the culture of this forum, there will be those who care to read and those who don't. Nothing is really a one size fits all when it comes to life and commentary. I'm fairly certain, this site gets new members on a daily basis, and may even get members who may have not be long term Democrats, and maybe even young people who have never engaged politics. Therefore, I won't assume that "everyone" here is the most seasoned and long term devotees.... and that is a fairness, which is open to hope... the party continues to expand and grow and attract new members, "everyday" a mass of people turn 18, and in doing so, a great many are motivated to become political and self invested voters. If that were not true, then the Party itself would be in dire trouble. It has a responsibility to grow its membership, not just 'assume and cater only to its long term members that compose the base, it has to grow with society and everyday.... there are people becoming voter age, as well as today, with the madness of Trump and his mess, more and more who have never been concerned about politics and understanding Political Party as also being attracted to become members of the Democratic party.

Therefore, I won't become one to write with an assumption that 'everyone who visits and has joined this site" has a long background in being members of the Democratic Party, or even being Politically concerned.

I work and engage people young and old who are not very political minded and some who are astonished at some of the history involved... Therefore it is not suitable for me to just post one liner agreements to commentary, I support the base, but I also support 'ALL" NEW COMERS.


Well, then, the I's appear to have it.

And a "me", too.

[DesertRat]

9. Welcome to DU, dhk08002!

I'm always glad to meet new members. How did you find our little corner of the internet?